Jakim's guidelines will only push Malaysia nearer towards extremism - Koh Chin

Koh in a statement today said he regretted the proposal by the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (JAKIM) for gender segregation at concerts.

He added that the suggestion was seen as regressive and contradicted the core values of Malaysia as a multi-racial society.

“An individual's constitutional right to entertainment will be negatively impacted by the guidelines, which is unjust and unsuitable.

“Given the multi-cultural practices of our country, interaction among the races will be obstructed during any entertainment event.

“JAKIM's failure to see things from a wider perspective will certainly result in serious impingement into the rights of an individual, which also leads towards a divided Malaysian society along religious and/or gender lines. Such a situation ironically runs against justice which the religion itself calls for,” said the MCA Central Committee Member.

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He said if JAKIM is adamant that the new guidelines must be adhered to, he feared that this will only bring confusion to the entertainment industry.

Earlier, the gender segregation guidelines issued by Jakim serves only as a reference and is not forced on anyone, said its director Datuk Othman Mustapha.

He added the guidelines are to help event organisers package their events according to Syariah requirements.

"We only want to instill the understanding among the people on the types of entertainment accepted in Islam,” he said at a media conference today.